A Hologram for the King
Directed by Tom Tykwer
Written: Book: Dave Eggers; Screenplay Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tom Hanks, Alexander Black, Sarita Choudhury
Tom Hanks plays Alan, a U.S. business man in Saudi Arabia trying to sell the King of the KSA an IT system featuring holograms. The movie details the troubles he has in just finding the king much less in selling him his system. But more than that, this is a fish out of water story, reminding me of the great Scottish film, LOCAL HERO. It doesn’t have the humor of that classic, but it does have a terrific performance by Tom Hanks, for whom nothing goes right. This would especially include the appearance of a huge cyst on his back, which he tries to remove.
Lucky he did though because it introduces him to a female doctor (Sarita Choudhury). His loneliness, alienation, and adrift status are brought swiftly to an end. This is certainly not the film for everyone, but it was the film for me. It was like Anthony Boudain had suddenly become likable and willing to spend time with a woman. No recipes but a lot of scenery.
Patti Abbott
